Reduced-complexity antenna system using multiplexed receive chain processing

ABSTRACT

A method for processing signals is disclosed and may include performing using one or more circuits, orthogonally multiplexing, on to a single processing chain, a plurality of replicas of a signal received via a corresponding plurality of spatially distinct antennas. The orthogonally multiplexed plurality of replicas of the received signal may be converted to corresponding digital multiplexed signals that include multiplexed replicas of the plurality of received signals. The corresponding digital multiplexed signals may be demultiplexed to generate the plurality of replicas of the signal received via the corresponding plurality of spatially distinct antennas. The plurality of replicas of the received signal may be spread, for example, may be orthogonally spread.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 11/669,486filed Jan. 31, 2007, and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,590,202 on Sep. 15,2009, which in turn makes reference to, U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/606,371 filed Jun. 24, 2003 (issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,263,146 onAug. 28, 2007), which in turn makes reference to, claims priority to andclaims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.60/391,347, filed Jun. 24, 2002.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an antenna diversity receiver for radiocommunication systems, and more particularly to a reduced-complexityantenna arrangement disposed to utilize a single processing chain of theassociated diversity receiver.

2. Background Information

It has recently been proposed that both the performance and capacity ofexisting wireless system could be improved through the use of so-called“smart” antenna techniques. In particular, it has been suggested thatsuch techniques, coupled with space-time signal processing, could beutilized both to combat the deleterious effects of multipath fading of adesired incoming signal and to suppress interfering signals. In this wayboth performance and capacity of digital wireless systems in existenceor being deployed (e.g., CDMA-based systems, TDMA-based systems, WLANsystems, and OFDM-based systems such as IEEE 802.11a/g) may be improved.

It is anticipated that smart antenna techniques will be increasinglyutilized both in connection with deployment of base stationinfrastructure and mobile subscriber units (e.g, handsets) in cellularsystems in order to address the increasing demands being placed uponsuch systems. These demands are arising in part from the shift underwayfrom current voice-based services to next-generation wireless multimediaservices and the accompanying blurring of distinctions among voice,video and data modes of transmission. Subscriber units utilized in suchnext-generation systems will likely be required to demonstrate highervoice quality relative to existing cellular mobile radio standards aswell as to provide high-speed data services (e.g., as high as 10Mbits/s). Achieving high speed and high quality of service, however, iscomplicated because it is desirable for mobile subscriber units to besmall and lightweight, and to be capable of reliably operating in avariety of environments (e.g., cellular/microcellular/picocellular,urban/suburban/rural and indoor/outdoor). Moreover, in addition tooffering higher-quality communication and coverage, next-generationsystems are desired to more efficiently use available bandwidth and tobe priced affordably to ensure widespread market adoption.

In many wireless systems, three principal factors tend to account forthe bulk of performance and capacity degradation: multipath fading,delay spread between received multipath signal components, andco-channel interference (CCI). As is known, multipath fading is causedby the multiple paths which may be traversed by a transmitted signal enroute to a receive antenna. The signals from these paths add togetherwith different phases, resulting in a received signal amplitude andphase that vary with antenna location, direction and polarization, aswell as with time (as a result of movement through the environment).Increasing the quality or reducing the effective error rate in order toobviate the effects of multipath fading has proven to be extremelydifficult. Although it would be theoretically possible to reduce theeffects of multipath fading through use of higher transmit power oradditional bandwidth, these approaches are often inconsistent with therequirements of next-generation systems.

As mentioned above, the “delay spread” or difference in propagationdelays among the multiple components of received multipath signals hasalso tended to constitute a principal impediment to improved capacityand performance in wireless communication systems. It has been reportedthat when the delay spread exceeds approximately ten percent (100%) ofthe symbol duration, the resulting significant intersymbol interference(ISI) generally limits the maximum data rate. This type of difficultyhas tended to arise most frequently in narrowband systems such as theGlobal System for Mobile Communication (GSM).

The existence of co-channel interference (CCI) also adversely affectsthe performance and capacity of cellular systems. Existing cellularsystems operate by dividing the available frequency channels intochannel sets, using one channel set per cell, with frequency reuse. Mosttime division multiple access (TDMA) systems use a frequency reusefactor of 7, while most code division multiple (CDMA) systems use afrequency reuse factor of 1. This frequency reuse results in CCI, whichincreases as the number of channel sets decreases (i.e., as the capacityof each cell increases). In TDMA systems, the CCI is predominantly fromone or two other users, while in CDMA systems there may exist manystrong interferers both within the cell and from adjacent cells. For agiven level of CCI, capacity can be increased by shrinking the cellsize, but at the cost of additional base stations.

The impairments to the performance of cellular systems of the typedescribed above may be at least partially ameliorated by usingmulti-element antenna systems designed to introduce a diversity gaininto the signal reception process. There exist at least three primarymethods of effecting such a diversity gain through decorrelation of thesignals received at each antenna element: spatial diversity,polarization diversity and angle diversity. In order to realize spatialdiversity, the antenna elements are sufficiently separated to enable lowfading correlation. The required separation depends on the angularspread, which is the angle over which the signal arrives at the receiveantennas.

In the case of mobile subscriber units (e.g, handsets) surrounded byother scattering objects, an antenna spacing of only one quarterwavelength is often sufficient to achieve low fading correlation. Thispermits multiple spatial diversity antennas to be incorporated within ahandset, particularly at higher frequencies (owing to the reduction inantenna size as a function of increasing frequency). Furthermore, dualpolarization antennas can be placed close together, with low fadingcorrelation, as can antennas with different patterns (for angle ordirection diversity). However, each antenna element deployed in awireless handset requires a separate chain of signal processingelectronics, which increases the cost and power consumption of thehandset.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment, the invention can be characterized as a method, andmeans for accomplishing the method, of receiving a signal, the methodincluding the steps of: receiving each of a plurality of replicas by oneof a corresponding plurality of antenna elements so as to therebygenerate a plurality of received signal replicas; orthogonallymultiplexing the plurality of received signal replicas into amultiplexed signal provided to a single processing chain; andtransforming, within the single processing chain, the multiplexed signalinto a plurality of separate signals that each corresponds to one of thereplicas of the signal.

In variations, orthogonal multiplexing is carried out according to acomplex Walsh coding scheme. In other variations, respective switchingsignals to multiplex the signal replicas are offset from each other by90 degrees.

In another embodiment the invention can be characterized as a method forreceiving a signal including the steps of: receiving each of amultiplicity of replicas of the signal by one of a correspondingmultiplicity of antenna elements so as to thereby generate amultiplicity of received signal replicas; switching signal energy fromamong ones of a first subset of the multiplicity of antenna elements tocreate a first signal comprising signal energy from each of the ones ofthe first subset of the multiplicity of antenna elements; switchingsignal energy from among ones of a second subset of the multiplicity ofantenna elements to create a second signal comprising signal energy fromeach of the ones of the second subset of the multiplicity of antennaelements; offsetting, in phase, the second signal from the first signal;combining the second signal with the first signal thereby forming amultiplexed signal comprising information representative of eachrespective replica of the signal; and transforming, within the singleprocessing chain, the multiplexed signal into separate signals whereineach of the separate signals corresponds to one of the replicas of thesignal.

In a further embodiment, the invention can be characterized as anapparatus for receiving a signal, the apparatus comprising: a pluralityof antenna elements spatially arranged to receive one of a correspondingplurality of replicas of the signal so as to be capable of generating aplurality of received signal replicas; a signal processing chain; and anorthogonal multiplexer, coupled between the plurality of antennaelements and the signal processing chain, wherein the orthogonalmultiplexor is configured to receive the plurality of received signalreplicas and orthogonally multiplex the plurality of received signalreplicas as a multiplexed signal on to the signal processing chain. Thesignal processing chain includes a demultiplexer configured to transformthe multiplexed signal into a plurality of separate signals, whereineach of the plurality of separate signals corresponds to one of thereplicas of the signal.

In yet another embodiment, the invention may be characterized as amethod for orthogonally multiplexing a signal, the method comprisingsteps of: generating a plurality of orthogonal signals; multiplying eachof the plurality of orthogonal signals by one of a correspondingplurality of replicas of the signal so as to thereby generate aplurality of coded signal replicas, wherein each of the plurality ofreplicas of the signal is received by one of a corresponding pluralityof antenna elements; and combining the plurality of coded signalreplicas to form a orthogonally multiplexed signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a conventional diversity receiver in whichthe signals received by multiple antenna elements are weighted andcombined in order to generate an output signal;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a conventional spatial-temporal (ST)filtering arrangement;

FIG. 3 is a representation of a multiple-input/multiple-output antennaarrangement within a wireless communication system;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram depicting a conventional architecture of amultiple receive antenna system in the RF domain;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram representing a digital equivalent to thecircuit of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a plural-element antenna processing modulein accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart depicting steps traversed by the plural-elementantenna processing module of FIG. 6 when receiving a signal according toone embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are graphs illustratively representing an output of themultiplexing switch of the plural-element antenna processing module ofFIG. 6 in both the time domain and the frequency domain respectivelyaccording to one embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a graph representing a signal waveform appearing at the outputof the multiplexing switch of the plural-element antenna processingmodule of FIG. 6 according to one embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a graph depicting an output of one of the low-pass filters ofthe plural-element antenna processing module of FIG. 6 when theswitching tone and a next harmonic are admitted;

FIG. 11 is a graph depicting an output of one of the low-pass filters ofthe plural-element antenna processing module of FIG. 6 when only thefundamental switching tone is admitted;

FIGS. 12A and 12B are graphs depicting the pulse shape of an exemplaryimplementation of the matched filters of the plural-element antennaprocessing module of FIG. 6 in the time and frequency domainrespectively;

FIGS. 13A and 13B are graphs depicting an output of the matched filtersof the plural-element antenna processing module of FIG. 6 in the timeand frequency domain respectively;

FIG. 14 is a graph depicting a constellation estimate when switching ofthe plural-element antenna processing module of FIG. 6 is carried out atfive switching operations per symbol;

FIG. 15 is a graph depicting another constellation estimate whenswitching of the plural-element antenna processing module of FIG. 6 iscarried out at twenty switching operations per symbol;

FIG. 16 is a graph depicting yet another constellation estimate whenswitching of the plural-element antenna processing module of FIG. 6 iscarried out at fifty switching operations per symbol;

FIG. 17 is a graph depicting an average bit error rate for a singleantenna system;

FIG. 18 is a graph depicting an average bit error rate for the antennaprocessing module of FIG. 6 operative at a switching frequency fs oftwenty times (20×) the applicable symbol rate;

FIG. 19 is a graph depicting an average bit error rate for the antennaprocessing module of FIG. 6 operative at a switching frequency fs of twotimes (2×) the applicable symbol rate;

FIG. 20 is another embodiment of an antenna processing module configuredto operate with more than two antenna elements;

FIG. 21 is a flow chart depicting steps traversed by the plural-elementantenna processing module of FIG. 20 when receiving a signal accordingto one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 22 is a timing diagram of switching signals applied to two of theantenna elements of FIGS. 6 and 21 according to one embodiment;

FIG. 23 is a timing diagram of switching signals applied to two of theantenna elements of FIGS. 6 and 21 according to one embodiment;

FIG. 24 is yet another embodiment of an antenna-processing moduleconfigured to operate with more than two antenna elements;

FIGS. 25A and 25B are a complex Walsh coding matrix and associatedtiming diagram, according to one embodiment, utilized to provideswitching signals to the mixers of the antenna-processing module of FIG.24; and

FIGS. 26A and 26B are a complex Walsh coding matrix and associatedtiming diagram, according to another embodiment, utilized to provideswitching signals to the mixers of the antenna-processing module of FIG.24.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following description, various aspects of the present inventionwill be described. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in theart that the present invention may be practiced with only some or allaspects of the present invention. For purposes of explanation, specificnumbers, materials and configurations are set forth in order to providea thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will alsobe apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may bepracticed without the specific details. In other instances, well knownfeatures are omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the presentinvention.

Various operations will be described as multiple discrete stepsperformed in turn in a manner that is most helpful in understanding thepresent invention, however, the order of description should not beconstrued as to imply that these operations are necessarily orderdependent, in particular, the order the steps are presented.Furthermore, the phrase “in one embodiment” will be used repeatedly,however the phrase does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment,although it may.

In order to configure a mobile device to process signals from multipleantenna elements, the cost and power consumption of the associatedelectronics within the device should desirably be capable ofimplementation in a cost-effective manner. In this regard the presentinvention is directed to a system and method for implementing multipleantenna elements within mobile devices in a manner that potentiallyreduces costs, which typically accompany multi-element antennaarrangements. The present invention is not limited to mobile devices andmay also be applied to infrastructure elements (e.g., base stations andaccess points). In addition, the present invention is applicable tonearly all known wireless standards and modulation schemes (e.g., GSM,CDMA2000, WCDMA, WLAN, fixed wireless standards, OFDM and CDMA). As willbe described below, various advantages offered by the present inventionderive from the multiplexing of the signals received from a number ofantenna elements onto a common receive chain processing path in order toreduce overall power consumption and cost.

For example, the present invention according to several embodimentsprovides a reduced-complexity, plural-element antenna arrangement andassociated receiver design capable of being implemented at low cost. Insome embodiments, the antenna arrangement and receiver design does notmaterially increase power consumption relative to single-elementapproaches, thereby rendering it particularly suitable forimplementation within wireless handsets.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, samples from pluralantenna elements are time-multiplexed onto a single RF processing pathusing orthogonal switching functions. Demultiplexing is then performedin the digital domain along with channel selection and spatial and timeprocessing.

In order to facilitate appreciation of the principals of the invention,a brief overview of various conventional multi-element antenna systemsdesigned to mitigate delay spread, interference and fading effects isprovided with reference to FIGS. 1-4.

Referring first to FIG. 1, shown is a block diagram of a conventionaldiversity receiver 100 in which the signals received by multiple antennaelements are weighted and combined in order to generate an outputsignal. Shown in the conventional diversity receiver 100 are acollection of M antenna elements 102, and coupled with each respectiveantenna element are parallel receive chains 104, 106, 108 that includerespective weighting portions 110, 112, 114. The receive chains 104,106, 108 all couple with a combiner 116 and a combined single 118 exitsfrom the combiner 116.

With M antenna elements, such an array generally provides an increasedantenna gain of “M” as well as a diversity gain against multipath fadingdependent upon the correlation of the fading among the antenna elements.In this context the antenna gain is defined as the reduction in requiredreceive signal power for a given average output signal-to-noise ratio(SNR), while the diversity gain is defined as the reduction in therequired average output SNR for a given bit error rate (BER) withfading.

For interference mitigation, each of the M antenna elements 102 areweighted at the respective weighting portions 110, 112, 114 and combinedin the combiner 116 to maximize signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio(SINR). This weighting process is usually implemented in a manner thatminimizes mean squared error (MMSE), and utilizes the correlation of theinterference to reduce the interference power.

Turning now to FIG. 2, a block diagram is shown of a conventionalspatial-temporal (ST) filtering arrangement 200. Shown are a firstantenna 202 and a second antenna 204 respectively coupled to a firstlinear equalizer 206 and a second linear equalizer 208. Outputs of eachof the first and second linear equalizers 206, 208 are coupled to acombiner 210, and an output of the combiner 201 is coupled to anMLSE/DFE portion 212.

The filtering arrangement of FIG. 2 is designed to eliminate delayspread using joint space-time processing. In general, since the CCI isunknown at the receiver, optimum space-time (ST) equalizers, either inthe sense of a minimum mean square error (MMSE) or maximumsignal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), typically include awhitening filter, e.g. linear equalizers (LE) 206, 208 that whitens theCCI both spatially and temporally, and the filtering arrangement of FIG.2 is typical of such systems. As shown in FIG. 2, the linear equalizers(LE) 206, 208 are followed by a non-linear filter that is represented bythe MLSE/DFE portion 212, which is implemented using either a decisionfeedback equalizer (DFE) or maximum-likelihood sequence estimator(MLSE).

As is known to one of ordinary skill in the art, the turbo principle canalso be used to replace the non-linear filters with superiorperformance, but higher computational complexity. Using ST processing(STP) techniques, SNR gains of up to 4 dB and SINR gains of up to 21 dBhas been reported with a modest number of antenna elements.

Referring next to FIG. 3, shown is a generic representation of amultiple-input/multiple-output antenna arrangement within a wirelesscommunication system. Shown are a transmitter (TX) 302 coupled tomultiple transmit antennas 304, and the multiple transmitter antennas304 are shown transmitting a signal via time varying obstructions 306 tomultiple receive antennas 308 that are coupled to a receiver (RX) 310.As shown, multiple antenna elements are deployed at both the transmitter(TX) 302 and receiver (RX) 310 of the wireless communication system.

In addition to multiple-input/multiple-output antenna (MIMO)arrangements, other antenna arrangements may be categorized, based uponthe number of “inputs” and “outputs” to the channel linking atransmitter and receiver, as follows:

-   -   Single-input/single-output (SISO) systems, which include        transceivers (e.g., mobile units and a base station) with a        single antenna for uplink and down link communications.    -   Multi-input/single-output (MISO) systems, which include one or        more receivers, which downlink via multiple antenna inputs, and        one or more transmitters, which uplink via a single antenna        output.    -   Single-input/multi-output (SIMO) systems, which include one or        more receivers, which downlink via a single antenna input, and        one or more transmitters, which uplink via multiple antenna        outputs.

One aspect of the attractiveness of multi-element antenna arrangements,particularly MIMOs, resides in the significant system capacityenhancements that can be achieved using these configurations. Assumingperfect estimates of the applicable channel at both the transmitter andreceiver are available, in a MIMO system with M receive antennas thereceived signal decomposes to M independent channels. This results in anM-fold capacity increase relative to SISO systems. For a fixed overalltransmitted power, the capacity offered by MIMOs scale with increasingSNR for a large, but practical, number of M of antenna elements.

In the particular case of fading multipath channels, it has been foundthat the use of MIMO arrangements permits capacity to be scaled bynearly M additional bits/cycle for each 3-dB increase in SNR. This MIMOscaling attribute is in contrast to a baseline configuration,characterized by M=1, which by Shannon's classical formula scales as onemore bit/cycle for every 3-dB of SNR increase. It is noted that thisincrease in capacity that MIMO systems afford is achieved without anyadditional bandwidth relative to the single element baselineconfiguration.

However, widespread deployment of multi-element antenna arrangements inwireless communication systems (particularly within wireless handsets)has been hindered by the resultant increase in complexity and associatedincreased power consumption, cost and size. These parameter increasesresult, at least in part, from a requirement in many proposedarchitectures that a separate receiver chain be provided for each foreach antenna element.

For example, FIG. 4 depicts one conventional architecture of a multiplereceive antenna system in the RF domain. As shown, the implementation ofFIG. 4 includes a separate receive chain 402, 404, 406 for each of Mantenna elements, and each receive chain 402, 404, 406 includes elementsto perform amplification, filtering and mixing. As a consequence, thecost of implementing a system with this architecture is higher than asystem with a single receive chain.

This approach is further disadvantageous because analog-phase shiftersand variable gain amplifiers are utilized, which renders it relativelyexpensive and susceptible to performance degradation as a result ofaging, temperature variation, and deviation from prescribed tolerances.In addition, because the implementation of FIG. 4 makes use of a phaserelationship between the received and transmitted antenna elements(i.e., the path differential delay is maintained throughout each receiveprocessing chain), rigid adherence to tolerances and accuratecalibration is required in each RF processing chain.

Referring next FIG. 5, shown is a block diagram representing a digitalequivalent to the circuit of FIG. 4. In general, the performance of thedigital circuit arrangement of FIG. 5 is degraded for substantially thesame reasons as was described above with reference to FIG. 4. That is,the duplication of the entire receiver chain (i.e., from RF to baseband)associated with each antenna element leads to an increase in size, cost,complexity and power consumption relative to single antenna approaches.As a result, multi-element antenna configurations have heretofore beenunsuitable for deployment in the handsets and other mobile terminalsused within wireless communication systems.

Overview and System Architecture

As is described in further detail below, several embodiments of thereduced-complexity antenna arrangement and receiver of the presentinvention are premised on consolidating the RF processing operationsassociated with each antenna element into a single processing chain, andin some embodiments RF processing operations are consolidated into asingle processing chain as soon as is practicable.

In some embodiments, this consolidation is achieved by multiplexingsamples from a switch element connected to a pair of antenna elementsonto a single RF processing chain. Upon completion of the RF processingeffected by this single RF chain, the incident signals are passedthrough matched filters operative to reduce the applicable samplefrequency to the appropriate base band rate. Upon recovery of thesignals initially received by each antenna element in the digitaldomain, the recovered signals are then subjected to conventional spatialprocessing. The structure may be generalized for use with more than apair of antenna elements by modifying the structure of themultiplexer/demultiplexer and the sample spacing of the signal streamsprovided to the matched filters associated with each antenna element.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram, which illustratively represents a receiverfront end incorporating a plural-element antenna processing module 600in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. Theplural-element antenna processing module 600 includes first and secondantenna elements 602 and 604 coupled through a multiplexer switch 608 toan RF processing chain 610. While referring to FIG. 6, simultaneousreference will be made to FIG. 7, which is a flowchart illustratingsteps carried out by the plural-element antenna processing module 600according to one embodiment of the present invention.

In operation, the first and second antenna elements 602 and 604initially receive a signal from two spatially distinct locations. Thus,replicas of the signal are received at each of the first and secondantenna elements 602 and 604 (Step 702). In several embodiments, thereplicas received at the first and second antenna elements 602 and 604are uncorrelated replicas of the signal.

Each of the replicas of the signal received at the first and secondantenna elements 602 and 604 are then orthogonally multiplexed on to theprocessing chain 610 (Step 704). In some embodiments, the orthogonalmultiplexing is carried out by multiplying one replica of the signalreceived (e.g., at the first antenna 602) by a first switching signal,and multiplying another replica of the signal received (e.g., at thesecond antenna 604) by a second switching signal, which is 90 degreesout of phase with the first switching signal.

Referring briefly to FIG. 23, shown are two square waves, out of phaseby 90 degrees, which are exemplary of square waves used as switchingsignals to multiply received replicas of the signal received at thefirst and second antennas 602, 604 according to one embodiment. As shownin FIG. 23, each of the square waves reverses polarity during eachcycle. It should be recognized, however, that switching-square wavesneed not reverse polarity during each cycle, but by employing squarewaves that reverse polarity during each cycle (i.e., that more closelyresemble a sin wave), fewer harmonics are produced during themultiplexing process, and as a consequence, less rigorous filtering ofthe multiplexed signal is required.

In other embodiments, as discussed further with reference to FIGS. 24and 25, the frequency spreading is performed in accordance with complexWalsh coding principals.

As one of ordinary skill in the art recognizes, the multiplexer 608 maybe implemented using various combinations of hardware andsoftware/firmware. In one embodiment, for example, a single-poledouble-throw (SPDT) switch is utilized in connection withfrequency-offset techniques to orthogonally multiplex replicas of asignal. Alternatively, as discussed further with respect to FIG. 24,mixers are implemented to providing switching signals to the replicas ofthe received signal.

Referring briefly to FIGS. 8A and 8B, shown are representations of theoutput of the multiplexing switch 608 in both the time domain and thefrequency domain respectively for an exemplary embodiment, in whichreplicas of the signal are not phase offset and the fundamental tonerequired to implement the oscillation of the switching process is offsetfrom the carrier fc by 218 kHz. In the time domain representation ofFIG. 8A, the time-multiplexing of the signals received from the firstand second antenna elements 602, 604 upon RF processing chain 610 isevident and makes apparent that the received signals differ primarilyonly in amplitude in this example. The spreading of the signal receivedby the antenna elements 602, 604 due to the operation of themultiplexing switch 608 is made apparent by the power spectrum plot inFIG. 8B. Higher order harmonics are also apparent in the power spectrumplot of FIG. 8B, and in general only the centre frequency and each ofthese 218 kHz offsets are passed into the ADCs 634, 636.

Mathematically, multiplexing may be represented as an application ofswitching signals s1(t) and s2(t) to the signal energy r1(t) received bythe first antenna element 602 “Ant 1” and to the signal energy r2(t)received by the second antenna element 604 “Ant 2” results in:m(t)=r1(t)s1(t)+r2(t)s2(t)where

-   -   s1(t)=1+cos(2πfs/2t)    -   s2(t)=1+cos(2πfs/2t+π)    -   r1(t)=sin(2πfct+p1(t))    -   r2(t)=sin(2πfct+p2(t))    -   p1(t)=base band phase process as received on Ant 1    -   p2(t)=base band phase process as received on Ant 2        It is noted that in the above mathematical representation a sin        waveform rather than a square waveform is utilized as the        switching function. As a result, calculations are simplified        because of the lower harmonic content of sinusoidal waveforms        relative to square waveforms.

As previously discussed, in several embodiments, switching signals(e.g., square waves) that reverse polarity during each cycle are used tomore closely approximate a sin waveform. This substantially reduces oreliminates spurious harmonic energy that is potentially produced.

Returning again to the mathematical representation, an expansion of m(t)yields:

m(t) = r 1(t) + r 2(t) + sin (2 π(fc − fs/2)t + p 1(t))/2 + sin (2 π(fc − fs/2 + π)t + p 2(t))/2 + sin (2 π(fc + fs/2)t + p 1(t))/2 + sin (2 π(fc + fs/2 + π)t + p 2(t))/2The spectrum of the signal m(t) appears as a centre peak at the carrierfrequency fc, and has identical side lobes offset by fs/2 on either sideof fc.

In one exemplary embodiment, the multiplexer 608 switches at a rate ofat least twenty (20) times the symbol rate of the information receivedby the antenna elements 602 and 604. However, in alternate embodiments,the switching rate of the orthogonal multiplexor 608 ranges fromapproximately twice the applicable symbol rate to larger than 20 timessuch rate.

Next, the multiplexed signal from the multiplexer 608 is down convertedfrom RF frequency (Step 706). On of ordinary skill in the art willrecognize that a single one of the side lobes discussed above containsthe sum of the two signals of interest with a phase offset of π radians,and one side lobe reduces the applicable expression to the sum of twosinusoids offset in phase:sin(2π(fc−fs/2)t+p1(t))/2+sin(2π(fc−fs/2+π)t+p2(t))/2

When p1(t)=p2(t), however, then this component is zero and is not ofpractical utility. Thus, in several embodiments, because m(t) is thesignal of interest, the received signal energy is mixed down at thecarrier frequency.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6 for example, the RF processingchain 610 includes an in-phase (I) branch 614 and a quadrature-phase (Q)branch 618 which respectively include a first mixer device 620 and asecond mixer device 624. As shown, the first mixer device 620 issupplied with a mixing signal cos(fc), where fc denotes the frequency ofthe received carrier signal. Similarly, the second mixer device 624 issupplied with the mixing signal sin(fc). The mixer devices 620 and 624function to mix down the received signal energy at the carrier frequencyfc, which results in generation of a center peak at DC and a pair ofside lobes “folded” on top of each other at the one half of theswitching frequency (fs/2) of the multiplexing switch 608.

As shown in FIG. 6, the signal energy from the first mixer device 620and the second mixer device 624 is provided to a first low-pass filter630 and a second low-pass filter 632 respectively, and in oneembodiment, the signal energy in both the in-phase (I) branch 614 andthe quadrature-phase (Q) branch 618 is filtered at a cut-off of fs.

After low pass filtering at a cut-off of fs (which leaves s1(t) ands2(t) intact), the I and Q components of m(t) are obtained as follows:

$\begin{matrix}{{{m\_ b}{\_ I}(t)} = {{m(t)}*{\cos( {2\;\pi\;{fc}\; t} )}}} \\{= {{s\; 1(t)r\; 1(t){\cos( {2\;\pi\;{fc}\; t} )}} + {s\; 2(t)r\; 2(t){\cos( {2\;\pi\;{fc}\; t} )}}}} \\{= {{s\; 1(t){\sin( {p\; 1(t)} )}} + {s\; 2(t){\sin( {p\; 2(t)} )}}}}\end{matrix}$ $\begin{matrix}{{{m\_ b}{\_ Q}(t)} = {{m(t)}*{\sin( {2\;\pi\;{fc}\; t} )}}} \\{= {{s\; 1(t)r\; 1(t){\sin( {2\;\pi\;{fc}\; t} )}} + {s\; 2(t)r\; 2(t){\sin( {2\;\pi\;{fc}\; t} )}}}} \\{= {{s\; 1(t){\cos( {p\; 1(t)} )}} + {s\; 2(t){\cos( {p\; 2(t)} )}}}}\end{matrix}$These results are desirable because the function s1(t) and s2(t) may beregarded as being of square form.

FIGS. 9-11 provide exemplary representations of various signals existingproximate the low-pass filters 630 and 632. Specifically, FIG. 9represents a signal waveform appearing at the output of the multiplexingswitch 608 prior to filtering by one of the low-pass filters 630 and632.

FIG. 10 depicts the output of one of the low-pass filters 630 and 632 inthe case where the switching tone and the next harmonic are admitted.

In contrast, FIG. 11 represents the signal appearing at the output ofone of the low-pass filters in the case where only the fundamentalswitching tone is admitted.

The filtered signals from the first and second low pass filters 630 and632 are provided to a demultiplexer 638 via a first analog to digitalconverter (ADC) 634 and a second ADC 636 where the filtered signals areconverted from analog to digital (Step 708). The digital signals fromthe first analog to digital converter (ADC) 634 and a second ADC 636 arethen demultiplexed by the demultiplexer 638 (Step 710).

The demultiplexer 638 operates to route samples from the first antennaelement 602 to a first slot buffer 642 and from the second antennaelement 604 to a second slot buffer 644. Thus, the demultiplexor 638provides separate signals that are representative of the signal replicasreceived at the first and second antenna elements 602, 604. The bufferedsamples from the first slot buffer 642 and the second slot buffer 644are then pulse matched filtered by a first matched filter 650 and asecond matched filter 654 respectively (Step 712). After pulse matchedfiltering, the separate signals from the first and second pulse matchedfilters 650, 654 are spatially processed by a spatial processing module660 (Step 714). In one exemplary embodiment, the spatial processingmodule 660 executes known spatial processing algorithms in the digitaldomain.

FIGS. 12A and 12B depict a pulse shape of an exemplary implementation ofthe matched filters 650, 654 in the time and frequency domainrespectively. FIGS. 13A and 13B depict the output of the matched filters650, 654 in both the time and frequency domains.

In one embodiment, the pulse matched filters 650, 654 are not configuredto take into consideration discontinuities in the separate demultiplexedsignals that are a result of the sampling of the received signals r1(t)and r2(t) during the multiplexing operation effected by the multiplexingswitch 608. As the switching frequency fs increases to orders ofmagnitude greater than the symbol frequency of the received energy,however, any losses incurred during this effective sampling process tendto become negligible.

For example FIGS. 14-16 depict base band constellation estimatesgenerated (in the absence of noise and interference) on the basis ofoperation at 5, 20 and 50 switching operations per symbol, respectively.As shown, as switching frequency is increased, losses due to thesampling process become negligible.

In other embodiments, the pulse matched filters 650, 654 are configuredto take into consideration discontinuities in the separate demultiplexedsignals that are a result of the sampling of the received signals r1(t)and r2(t) during the multiplexing operation. The pulse matched filters650, 654 in these embodiments integrate the buffered samples from thefirst slot buffer 642 and the second slot buffer 644 (i.e. the separatelow pass signals after low pass filtering, demultiplexing and buffering)in order to gather a maximum amount of energy at the sampling instants.This is accomplished by the filters 650, 654 being matched to theseparate low pass signals as the complex conjugate of the separate lowpass signals.

The signal-to-noise performance of a receiver incorporating a processingmodule, e.g., the processing module 600 configured with two antennaelements, e.g., the first and second antenna elements 602, 604 has beencompared to the performance obtained using a receiver including only asingle antenna element. In general, it has been found that the spatialdiversity offered by the configuration of the present invention yieldssuperior results in the presence of signal fading. In the case whereinterferers having linearly independent spatial signatures are inexistence, the configuration of the present invention has been found tooffer substantial improvements in signal-to-noise performance.

Referring next to FIGS. 17-19, for example, the average error rate isrespectively depicted for the simulated cases of (i) a single antenna,(ii) an antenna processing module 600 configured with two antennas andoperative at a switching frequency fs of twenty times (20×) theapplicable symbol rate, and (iii) an antenna processing module 600configured with two antennas and operative at a switching frequency fsof two times (2×) the applicable symbol rate.

Referring next to FIG. 18, it is observed that at the moderate switchingfrequency fs of 20×/symbol a significant advantage is obtained over thesingle antenna case (FIG. 17). In contrast, FIG. 19 indicates that at aswitching frequency fs of 2×/symbol, performance is degraded relative tothe case of FIG. 18. Nonetheless, the performance at an fs of 2×/symbolappears to be superior to that of the single antenna case (FIG. 17). Itshould be noted that appropriate design of each matched filter 650, 654may substantially reduce or eliminate any difference in performance as afunction of switching frequency fs.

Referring next to FIG. 20, shown is another embodiment of anantenna-processing module 2000 configured to operate with more than twoantenna elements. As shown, the plural-element antenna processing module2000 includes a first, a second, a third and a forth antenna elements2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 coupled to a multiplexer 2001, which is coupledto an RF processing chain 2016. While referring to FIG. 20, simultaneousreference will be made to FIG. 21, which is a flowchart illustratingsteps carried out by the antenna-processing module 2000 according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

In operation, the antennas 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 receive a signal atspatially distinct locations, and as a consequence, each of the antennas2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 receives a respective replica of the signal (Step2102). In several embodiments, the antennas 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 arearranged so that each receives an uncorrelated replica of the signal.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 20, the multiplexer 2001 includes afirst and second multiplexing switches 2010, 2012, which operate assingle-pole double-throw (SPDT) switches. The first and second antennas2002, 2004 are coupled as a first subset of the four antennas 2002,2004, 2006, 2008 to the first multiplexing switch 2010 and the third andforth antennas 2006, 2008 are coupled as a second subset of the fourantennas 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 to the second multiplexing switch 2012.

In the present embodiment, the first multiplexing switch 2010 switchesbetween the first and second antenna elements 2002, 2004 at a rate offs/2 to create a first signal 2014 (Step 2104). Similarly, the secondmultiplexing switch 2012 switches between the third and forth antennaelements 2006, 2008 at the same rate of fs/2 to create a second signal2016 (Step 2106). The second signal 2016 is then offset, in phase, fromthe first signal by 90 degrees (Step 2108).

Referring briefly to FIG. 22, shown are two switching signals utilized,in one embodiment, to perform switching between the first and secondantenna elements 2002, 2004 (and between the third and forth antennaelements 2006, 2008) to form the first and second signals 2014, 2016 ofFIG. 20 respectively. In this embodiment, formation of the first signalis carried out by multiplying a signal replica received at the firstantenna 2002 by a first square wave and multiplying a signal replicareceived at the second antenna 2004 by a second square wave that is 180degrees out of phase with the first square wave. The same switchingscheme is applied to the second and third antennas to form the secondsignal, and then, as described above, the second signal 2016 is offsetby 90 degrees from the first signal.

Referring briefly to FIG. 23, shown are two switching signals utilizedin another embodiment to perform switching between the first and secondantenna elements 2002, 2004 and between the third and forth antennaelements 2006, 2008 to form the first and second signals 2014, 2016 ofFIG. 20 respectively. As shown in FIG. 23 the two switching signalssquare waves that are 90 degrees out of phase with each other and bothreverse polarity during each cycle.

In this embodiment, formation of the first signal is carried out bymultiplying a signal replica received at the first antenna 2002 by thefirst square wave and multiplying a signal replica received at thesecond antenna 2004 by the second square wave that is 90 degrees out ofphase with the first square wave. This same switching scheme applied tothe second and third antennas to form the second signal, and then thesecond signal 2016 is offset by 90 degrees from the first signal.

Next, the first and second signals 2014, 2016 are combined to form anorthogonally multiplexed signal on a processing chain 2016 (Step 2110).In this way, four antenna elements are multiplexed onto a common receivechain within an identical bandwidth as would be employed for atwo-antenna element embodiment. As a consequence, the present embodimentcan be implemented with less cost relative to other designs.

For example, relative to a multiplexer comprising a single-polefour-throw switch configured to switch between four antennas, thepresent embodiment uses half the bandwidth, and as a consequence, thepresent embodiment is more cost effective.

The multiplexed signal is then downconverted by a mixer device 2018(Step 2112), and filtered by a low-pass filter 2020 before beingconverted from analog to digital by a digital converter 2022.

After conversion to a digital representation, the multiplexed signal isthen demultiplexed by a demultiplexor 2024 into four separate signalsthat are each representative of a corresponding replica of the signal asreceived at a corresponding one of the four antenna elements 2002, 2004,2006, 2008 (Step 2114). The four separate signals are then pulse matchedfiltered by respective pulse matched filters 2026, 2028, 2030, 2032before being received by a spatial processing portion 2034.

Referring next to FIG. 24, shown is yet another embodiment of an antennaprocessing module 2400 configured to operate with more than two antennaelements. As shown, the plural-element antenna processing module 2400includes a first, a second, a third and a forth antenna elements 2402,2404, 2406, 2408 coupled to a multiplexer 2410, which is coupled to anRF processing chain 2016.

In operation, the antennas 2402, 2404, 2406, 2408 receive a signal atspatially distinct locations. As a consequence, each of the antennas2402, 2404, 2406, 2408 receives a respective replica of the signal. Inseveral embodiments, the antennas 2402, 2404, 2406, 2408 are arranged sothat each receives an uncorrelated replica of the signal.

As shown in FIG. 24, the multiplexer 2410 in the present embodimentincludes a first, a second, a third and a forth mixing units 2412, 2414,2416, 2418 that are respectively coupled to the antennas 2402, 2404,2406, 2408. The mixing units 2412, 2414, 2416, 2418 operate to injectswitching signals into each of the signal replicas received at therespective antennas 2402, 2404, 2406, 2408. In several embodiments, theswitching signals provided by each of the mixers are orthogonalswitching signals.

In one embodiment for example, the switching signals are implementedaccording to a complex Walsh coding scheme. Referring briefly to FIGS.25A and 25B, for example, shown are one embodiment of complex Walsh codematrix and a corresponding signal-timing diagram respectively. It shouldbe noted that each element in the complex code matrix of FIG. 25 is acomplex number, but in the present embodiment, the imaginary componentof each element is zero for sake of simplicity. It should also be notedthat in the present embodiment, the elements in the matrix are either 0or a 1, which correspond to either an “off” or “on” state.

In operation, each row of the complex Walsh matrix is interpreted, e.g.,by a CPU (not shown) and a corresponding switching signal is created, asshown in FIG. 25B, that is provided to a corresponding mixing unit 2412,2414, 2416, 2418. The mixing units 2412, 2414, 2416, 2418 then mix theswitching signals with the respective replicas received at the antennas2402, 2404, 2406, 2408. For example, the first row of the complex Walshmatrix in FIG. 25A is 0, 0, 0, 1, and as a consequence, during a firstthree switching cycles, as shown in FIG. 25B, the mixer 2412 mixes an“off” signal with the signal replica received at the first antenna 2402.

Referring to FIGS. 26A and 26B, shown are another embodiment of complexWalsh code matrix and a corresponding signal-timing diagramrespectively. As shown in FIG. 26A, the elements of the complex Walshcode matrix are either a 1 or a −1, and as a result, correspondingsignals, as shown in FIG. 26B, (in some instances) reverse polarity fromcycle to cycle. As a consequence, there are fewer harmonics producedwhen mixing the signals shown in FIG. 26B relative to the signals shownin FIG. 25B.

After the signal replicas from the antennas 2402, 2404, 2406, 2408 aremixed by respective switching signals, e.g., the switching signalsdescribed with reference to FIGS. 25B and 26B, the coded signal replicas2420, 2422, 2424, 2426 are then combined by a signal combiner 2428 toproduce an orthogonally multiplexed signal on the processing chain 2430.

It should be noted that the orthogonal multiplexing scheme of thepresent embodiment is one embodiment of carrying out Step 704 of FIG. 7.

After multiplexing, in some embodiments, the multiplexed signal is downconverted by a mixer 2430, filtered by a low pass filter 2432, convertedto a digital signal by an analog to digital converter 2434 and thendemultiplexed, by a demultiplexor 2436 into four representations of theoriginal signal replicas received at the antennas 2402, 2404, 2406,2408. The separate signals are then pulse match filtered by respectivepulse matched filters 2438, 2440, 2442, 2444 before being spatiallyprocessed by a spatial processing unit 2446.

The described and other embodiments could be implemented in systemsincluding, but not limited to time division multiple access (TDMA), codedivision multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access(FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDM), or anycombination of these. This could also include systems using any type ofmodulation to encode the digital data.

The foregoing description, for purposes of explanation, used specificnomenclature to provide a thorough understanding of the invention.However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the specificdetails are not required in order to practice the invention. In otherinstances, well-known circuits and devices are shown in block diagramform in order to avoid unnecessary distraction from the underlyinginvention. Thus, the foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments ofthe present invention are presented for purposes of illustration anddescription. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise forms disclosed, obviously many modificationsand variations are possible in view of the above teachings. Theembodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain theprinciples of the invention and its practical applications, to therebyenable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention andvarious embodiments with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated.

1. A method for processing signals, the method comprising: performingusing one or more circuits: orthogonally multiplexing, on to a singleprocessing chain, a plurality of replicas of a signal received via acorresponding plurality of spatially distinct antennas; converting saidorthogonally multiplexed plurality of replicas of said received signalto corresponding digital multiplexed signals comprising multiplexedreplicas of said plurality of received signals; and demultiplexing saidcorresponding digital multiplexed signals to generate said plurality ofreplicas of said signal received via said corresponding plurality ofspatially distinct antennas.
 2. The method according to claim 1,comprising spreading said plurality of replicas of said received signal.3. The method according to claim 1, comprising orthogonally spreadingsaid plurality of replicas of said received signals.
 4. The methodaccording to claim 1, comprising orthogonally spreading said pluralityof replicas of said received signal using Walsh codes.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1, comprising orthogonally spreading said pluralityof replicas of said received signal using complex Walsh codes.
 6. Themethod according to claim 1, comprising filtering said orthogonallymultiplexed plurality of replicas of said received signal.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 1, comprising low-pass filtering said orthogonallymultiplexed plurality of replicas of said received signal.
 8. The methodaccording to claim 1, comprising filtering said corresponding digitalmultiplexed signals comprising multiplexed replicas of said plurality ofreceived signals.
 9. The method according to claim 1, comprising pulsematch filtering said corresponding digital multiplexed signalscomprising multiplexed replicas of said plurality of received signals.10. The method according to claim 1, comprising injecting switchingsignals into each one of said plurality of replicas of said receivedsignal.
 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein said switchingsignals comprise orthogonal switching signals.
 12. A system forprocessing signals, the system comprising: one or more circuits that areoperable to: orthogonally multiplex, on to a single processing chain, aplurality of replicas of a signal received via a corresponding pluralityof spatially distinct antennas; convert said orthogonally multiplexedplurality of replicas of said received signal to corresponding digitalmultiplexed signals comprising multiplexed replicas of said plurality ofreceived signals; and demultiplex said corresponding digital multiplexedsignals to generate said plurality of replicas of said signal receivedvia said corresponding plurality of spatially distinct antennas.
 13. Thesystem according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits areoperable to spread said plurality of replicas of said received signal.14. The system according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuitsare operable to orthogonally spread said plurality of replicas of saidreceived signals.
 15. The system according to claim 12, wherein said oneor more circuits are operable to orthogonally spread said plurality ofreplicas of said received signal using Walsh codes.
 16. The systemaccording to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable toorthogonally spread said plurality of replicas of said received signalusing complex Walsh codes.
 17. The system according to claim 12, whereinsaid one or more circuits are operable to filtering said orthogonallymultiplex plurality of replicas of said received signal.
 18. The systemaccording to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable tolow-pass filter said orthogonally multiplexed plurality of replicas ofsaid received signal.
 19. The system according to claim 12, wherein saidone or more circuits are operable to filter said corresponding digitalmultiplexed signals comprising multiplexed replicas of said plurality ofreceived signals.
 20. The system according to claim 12, wherein said oneor more circuits are operable to pulse match filter said correspondingdigital multiplexed signals comprising multiplexed replicas of saidplurality of received signals.
 21. The system according to claim 12,wherein said one or more circuits are operable to inject switchingsignals into each one of said plurality of replicas of said receivedsignal.
 22. The system according to claim 21, wherein said switchingsignals comprise orthogonal switching signals.